Trees have become less-appreciated resources today with thousands of them cut down to give way for urban growth. However, a new study points out how they are incredibly important to our health and well-being. In fact, according to the results, living near or being surrounded by trees is equivalent to almost $20,000 annual salary increase.
A team of researchers of University of Chicago looked into the health benefits of living in areas with trees and then placed a monetary value on them. For the study, they used a large database of health data for at least 30,000 residents in Toronto, Canada. They also focused on the number of trees found in public places such as city streets, excluding those that grow in municipal parks.
They discovered that, controlling other factors that affect health and well-being such as income and age, every addition of trees in the street can improve health outcomes, such as better health perception and enhanced condition of their heart.
For instance, there are already over 500,000 trees in many city streets in Toronto. However, if they add at least 11 more of them for every street, nearby dwellers may boost their annual income up to $17,900. The amount is already a collective figure for all the positive changes and benefits affecting the physical and mental health. Further, a person may add 7 more years into his or her life.
These benefits are certainly greater than the economic cost of planting and maintaining these trees, which is only up to $5,000 for every 10 trees.
The University of Chicago study only strengthened the previous researches including one by Dave Nowak, a forester, and his team. As reported by Atlantic in 2014, according to their study, trees can prevent as many as 650,000 cases affecting the respiratory system and over 800 deaths. They can also save the government $7 billion in health care. Trees are some of the best natural filters against air pollution.